UKH

Got an e-mail from our kids primary school saying Red Nose day tomorrow - had forgotten and was searching where I could buy one from.

Turns out you can only buy them from Amazon......that well known company which offers so much support to the UK welfare state by avoiding tax, using zero hours contracts, highly questionable working practices in warehouses etc etc.

Maybe its just me (I don't buy stuff from Amazon for the reasons above so I am baised).....but this strikes me as a very odd choice of 'partner' for a charity focused on alleviating poverty/adressing the cost of living crisis........nothing in the press about it though, not even the Guardian

In reply to jonfun21:

It appears that you can buy them from the Comic Relief shop for £2.50 and with delivery charges of £4.99 for next day delivery and £6.99 for standard delivery.
https://shop.comicrelief.com/collections/our-top-products/products/rnd23-re...
Amazon also sell them for £2.50 with no delivery charges.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Red-Nose-For-Comic-Relief/dp/B0BPJT1FWL/ref=sr_1_1...

In reply to FactorXXX:

Thanks - that’s useful to know 

In reply to jonfun21:

They were on the checkout at homebase the other day

In reply to jonfun21:

Rather than buying more disposable tat, we should encourage kids to paint a red nose on if they want one, and just donate money to red nose day instead. 

In reply to girlymonkey: interestingly that’s the conclusion we have come to - daughter came out of school saying she wanted to face paint her whole face red but we have now “agreed” on just the nose!

In reply to jonfun21:

Wierdly I got two posted through my door on Tuesday (from Amazon) without me reqesting them.

In reply to jonfun21:

Thankfully our school doesn't get involved in this. I'm all for raising money (and donating) but not buying plastic for that purpose. It's all a bit outdated. But then I've complained to our school more than once about fancy dress days too. I'm really not sure what children learn from getting their parents to buy fancy dress outfits. They can have just as much fun / learn about books or whatever in their own clothes.

In reply to jonfun21:

I imagine that RND are delighted to get money from wherever they can, and that Amazon can quickly become a very big contributor to them via corporate/staff activities. If Amazon are anything like other major retailers and merchants, a "contribution to our partner charity" is pretty much a prerequisite of trading with them. Likewise attending their "charity auction" each year. 

Do you want RND to turn down that funding?

In reply to stubbed:

Just FYI: they are now made of paper, some clever honeycomb design  

In reply to rj_townsend:

Tricky one.......if we keep supporting/helping with the ESG washing of companies who don't pay tax, or treat workers fairly then the ones that do get marginalised and pushed out, public services suffer etc.

Also as a charity "getting money from wherever you can" (which I am not saying they are doing, just using your words) is not a great philosophy I would suggest. Recent examples include British Cycling.

In reply to jonfun21:

Like it or not, Amazon are a legitimate business. The beneficiaries or RND would be disadvantaged by the charity deciding not to take money collected by them. Corporate deals are big business for charities - the Keyline partnership with Prostate Cancer Research raised c£2m, and the Travis Perkins support of Breast Cancer Research a similar amount.

To be fair, I'm making the assumption here that Amazon is an "official partner" with RND, and are supporting them at a corporate level. That may or may not be the case.

In reply to rj_townsend:

Just had a look - they are an official partner, donating £1.8m so far plus whatever comes from the merchandise sales.

In reply to rj_townsend:

I am not suggesting that corporations supporting charities is a bad idea.

What I take issue with is a company that should be paying £XXXm per year in corporation tax, who in reality pays very little via aggressive tax avoidance, being positioned up as a partner that is "helping address poverty and cost of living in the UK and around the world" when in reality their financial/tax decision actions are having the opposite impact.

People need to realise they are in effect exercising a democratic choice (i.e. acceptance of less funding for public services) by purchasing from companies like Amazon etc.

In reply to jonfun21:

I can see where you're coming from, but would see it as foolish for RND to turn down the funding from Amazon. Who would benefit from that? Certainly not RND.

In reply to rj_townsend:

I would hope they could find another more ethical partner, £1.8m is a lot of money but they raised c£42m last year. 

The British Cycling debate ref Shell (aired on here and other places) was a similar situation -  it’s hard to do the right thing but ultimately if a charity organisation isn’t true to its principles then you have to question its real belief in/commitment to its purpose 

In reply to jonfun21:

"Should" in a moral or a legal sense ?

In reply to GrahamD:

When it comes to aggressive tax avoidance, the difference is often the extent of the legal resources you have available.

In reply to jonfun21:

Rather than a plastic red nose just encourage them to belt each other in the face. No waste. Job done!

In reply to GrahamD:

Moral - though governments should stop this, but I get it’s an international game that requires cooperation/someone not triggering a race to the bottom.

I also get it’s not tax evasion so it is legal 

But untimely if companies don’t pay tax in the country they operate then they are increasing profit by extracting social value 

In reply to jonfun21:

I try to avoid giving amazon a penny, I've recently discovered eflorist when searching for mother's day flowers is amazon in disguise.

Amazon 30bn uk turnover, only 200m declared in profit, but is given back tax credits from hmrc. It's a joke. There's a reason the guy has yachts worth millions and funds a space programme, while the countries he generates profit in suffer from under funded services. 

In reply to ExiledScot:

I posted this elsewhere recently but it's too good not to share again. Exasperated, satirical piss-take of Besos' not equitable wheelings and dealings . Be prepared to laugh.

Why Jeff Bezos Space Dream is Humanity's Greatest Nightmare

https://www.doubledown.news/watch/2021/july/26/why-jeff-bezos-space-dream-i...